It seems like months mired in legal woes is beginning to affect Blizzard far more than they initially anticipated. The company has already announced that their much anticipated annual conference, BlizzCon, wouldn’t be happening this year. However, players and fans of Blizzard’s have more bad news as it’s been revealed that more delays have come as a result of the lawsuits.
Two of the most anticipated titles from Blizzard – Diablo IV and Overwatch 2 – have been delayed until further notice. The announcement of the delay comes following an Investor call. While we know for a fact Diablo IV wasn’t ready for primetime in 2021, players were still hopeful that Overwatch 2 would be. That said, it comes as no surprise that the titles were delayed as both have lost senior developers to the lawsuits. Both were ensnared in sexual harassment allegations.
Overwatch seems most affected by the lawsuits as one of its main characters. Gunslinger, McCree, is getting renamed. In light of the character’s namesake, Jesse McCree, being embroiled in legal woes, the character has been given an updated story that changes his name. The sharpshooter formerly known as McCree is now Cole Cassidy. In Blizzard’s announcement of the change, they revealed even more details of the character. Cassidy’s updated story reads:
“The first thing a renegade loses is their name, and this one gave up his long ago.
Running from his past meant running from himself, and each passing year only widened the divide between who he had been and what he had become. But in every cowboy’s life, there comes a time when he has to stop and make a stand.
To make this new Overwatch better – to make things right – he had to be honest with his team and himself. The cowboy he was rode into the sunset, and Cole Cassidy faces the world at dawn”.
In addition to the delay in production for Overwatch 2 and Diablo IV, Blizzard also lost its co-lead, Jen Oneal, who announced that she would be leaving the company at the end of the year. In light of this, she will be transitioning to an unnamed role in the company.